pulling them out all over the place to feed the babies.”
“ Ew .” The cucumbers were cool against the lids of my pulsing eyes.
“Not ‘ ew ’. It’s a beautiful cycle of life,” Catherine called out, her precious twins wailing in the background.
“A cycle of life that Heartland’s Country Buffet doesn’t need to see,” Gen replied.
“I agree with Gen.” I pressed the speaker button and set the phone on my chest so I could massage my temples with my fingertips. “This is not a new conversation, so can we skip to the important reason I called, please?”
“How can you sound stressed when you’re on vacation on an island while we’re stuck here, freezing our asses off in a blizzard?” Gen huffed.
“You are not allowed to judge. Especially since I know you and Catherine Lynn are behind this.”
“Behind what?” Catherine demanded. “All I’ve been doing is breastfeeding babies.”
They had also put me on speakerphone.
“Don’t even think you can distract me with breastfeeding talk.” I drew my eyebrows together, and the cucumbers shifted precariously on my eyelids. From somewhere nearby a bird chirped amidst the gurgle of a waterfall dumping into a stream that wound its way around the resort, reminding me this was a place meant for relaxation. “I came here for perspective, and you send Leo?”
“What?” Gen asked, her voice dripping innocence.
“Don’t play dumb,” I lectured.
“Leo is there? That’s weird.” Catherine didn’t sound as interested as she should have. In fact, she sounded positively guilty.
“Yeah. Weird.” One of the cucumbers fell off and landed beside the lounge chair, but I didn’t bend to pick it up. Sudden movements were not my best friend right now, and this conversation was anything but relaxing. “Whose idea was it, yours or Cat’s?”
Even though Leo insisted no one had sent him, I couldn’t shake the feeling my sisters had a hand in it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Gen said, then cooed to my niece, “Ooh, it’s okay, pretty girl. Auntie Gen-Gen loves you.”
“Tell her Aunt Lexie loves her, too.”
“The twins miss you,” Catherine said, and I could hear a lecture coming on.
“They’re three months old. They don’t even know who I am.” I pictured my towheaded niece and nephew and smiled. “But I miss them, too.”
“Cat, you can’t feed him again,” Gen said. “All he does is eat and puke.”
“If he’s hungry, I need to feed him,” Catherine insisted.
“You take Sophie and give Brendan to me,” Gen said. There was muffled movement on their end of the line and a long pause. “He just needs his binky, and I’ll rock him.”
“I can see this conversation is going nowhere.” Was it too soon to take more aspirin for my headache? My head still pounded. I hadn’t suffered through a hangover of this magnitude since my freshman year of college. “I just wanted to tell you that Leo is ruining my vacation.”
“Oh, he is not.” Catherine’s tone dripped exasperation. “I don’t know how he could ruin a vacation on the beach. Look at him.”
“Catherine!” My cheeks warmed. Look at him? That’s all I’d been doing lately. It wasn’t my fault. He’s the one who kept coming around. I’d been just fine ignoring him.
“What? I’m just saying. There’re worse things for you to have to look at while on vacation. You’re welcome,” Catherine said.
“Ah ha! So you admit you sent him here!” The other cucumber fell off my eye, leaving me no choice but to sit up and replace them both with new ones from the tray.
“Actually, we didn’t send him there,” Gen corrected. “Roxanna told him you took off to the Caribbean—alone—and he was on the next flight out.”
Butterflies, though a bit lethargic in action, flitted to life in my stomach. He’d come on his own.
“You went off alone,” Catherine reprimanded.
“This honeymoon cost me a fortune. I wasn’t going to waste it. And I
“ Ew .” The cucumbers were cool against the lids of my pulsing eyes.
“Not ‘ ew ’. It’s a beautiful cycle of life,” Catherine called out, her precious twins wailing in the background.
“A cycle of life that Heartland’s Country Buffet doesn’t need to see,” Gen replied.
“I agree with Gen.” I pressed the speaker button and set the phone on my chest so I could massage my temples with my fingertips. “This is not a new conversation, so can we skip to the important reason I called, please?”
“How can you sound stressed when you’re on vacation on an island while we’re stuck here, freezing our asses off in a blizzard?” Gen huffed.
“You are not allowed to judge. Especially since I know you and Catherine Lynn are behind this.”
“Behind what?” Catherine demanded. “All I’ve been doing is breastfeeding babies.”
They had also put me on speakerphone.
“Don’t even think you can distract me with breastfeeding talk.” I drew my eyebrows together, and the cucumbers shifted precariously on my eyelids. From somewhere nearby a bird chirped amidst the gurgle of a waterfall dumping into a stream that wound its way around the resort, reminding me this was a place meant for relaxation. “I came here for perspective, and you send Leo?”
“What?” Gen asked, her voice dripping innocence.
“Don’t play dumb,” I lectured.
“Leo is there? That’s weird.” Catherine didn’t sound as interested as she should have. In fact, she sounded positively guilty.
“Yeah. Weird.” One of the cucumbers fell off and landed beside the lounge chair, but I didn’t bend to pick it up. Sudden movements were not my best friend right now, and this conversation was anything but relaxing. “Whose idea was it, yours or Cat’s?”
Even though Leo insisted no one had sent him, I couldn’t shake the feeling my sisters had a hand in it.
“I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Gen said, then cooed to my niece, “Ooh, it’s okay, pretty girl. Auntie Gen-Gen loves you.”
“Tell her Aunt Lexie loves her, too.”
“The twins miss you,” Catherine said, and I could hear a lecture coming on.
“They’re three months old. They don’t even know who I am.” I pictured my towheaded niece and nephew and smiled. “But I miss them, too.”
“Cat, you can’t feed him again,” Gen said. “All he does is eat and puke.”
“If he’s hungry, I need to feed him,” Catherine insisted.
“You take Sophie and give Brendan to me,” Gen said. There was muffled movement on their end of the line and a long pause. “He just needs his binky, and I’ll rock him.”
“I can see this conversation is going nowhere.” Was it too soon to take more aspirin for my headache? My head still pounded. I hadn’t suffered through a hangover of this magnitude since my freshman year of college. “I just wanted to tell you that Leo is ruining my vacation.”
“Oh, he is not.” Catherine’s tone dripped exasperation. “I don’t know how he could ruin a vacation on the beach. Look at him.”
“Catherine!” My cheeks warmed. Look at him? That’s all I’d been doing lately. It wasn’t my fault. He’s the one who kept coming around. I’d been just fine ignoring him.
“What? I’m just saying. There’re worse things for you to have to look at while on vacation. You’re welcome,” Catherine said.
“Ah ha! So you admit you sent him here!” The other cucumber fell off my eye, leaving me no choice but to sit up and replace them both with new ones from the tray.
“Actually, we didn’t send him there,” Gen corrected. “Roxanna told him you took off to the Caribbean—alone—and he was on the next flight out.”
Butterflies, though a bit lethargic in action, flitted to life in my stomach. He’d come on his own.
“You went off alone,” Catherine reprimanded.
“This honeymoon cost me a fortune. I wasn’t going to waste it. And I
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